Speak up, IMF chief tells Barbadian youth

Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Kristalina Georgieva is urging young Barbadians to speak up on issues related to climate change and other matters of importance to them if they want improvements.

Her advice came on Thursday as she took part in a discussion with President of the Barbados Economic Society Simon Naitram and responded to questions from students of the University of the West Indies (UWI) at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre.

Stating that no one could afford to sit on the sidelines at this time, the IMF official said: “We do face an existential threat. Here in Barbados, you witness it and it is the threat of our changing climate. We do need to act decisively to reduce the magnitude of this threat and that applies to everybody.”

Georgieva, an admitted fan of Barbadian superstar and National Hero The Right Excellent Robyn Rihanna Fenty, referenced her 2006 song S.O.S, saying Barbadians should think of themselves as “the most powerful force and use your voice”.

Pointing to the need for greater renewable energy uptake, she added: “At the IMF we have a message – if you add your voice as young people to this message, I would be extremely grateful – tax pollution, don’t tax people. Tax CO2 emissions and make sure that there is a price assigned to meeting them, whether it is a tax or it is a trade, or it is regulatory enforcement. What is significant is that we have to send a very clear signal to producers and to consumers that we simply cannot survive as humanity unless we change.”

“I cannot think of a better voice on the existential crisis than yours, because you are going to inherit the problems my generation created. So, press us but also act on your own. Set the example that you care and that is so powerful,” Georgieva told the UWI students.

The top IMF official said unity was needed to address pressing issues.

“Please add your voices. We are interdependent, we need each other. We cannot possibly break into blocs and then operate within these blocs alone. That is simply not possible, and it means, I understand, a 20 per cent increase in food prices in Barbados, and in Africa it means kids dying from hunger,” she said.

“So to solve problems we must build that sense of solidarity and build the trust that is the underpinning foundation of solidarity.”

Georgieva further advised the students not to be afraid to “step up and do the right thing”, as she also urged them to believe in themselves.
(MM)